Dickie Guy (born 6 January 1949) is an
EnglishEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
former non-league
goalkeeperIn association football, the goalkeeper occupies a position that represents the last line of defence between the opponent's offence and his own team's goal. The primary role of the goalkeeper is to defend his team's goal and prevent the opposition from scoring a goal...
for
Wimbledon FCWimbledon Football Club was an English professional football club from Wimbledon, south west London. Founded in 1889 as Wimbledon Old Centrals, the club spent most of its history in amateur and semi-professional non-League football before a rapid ascent to the top-flight of English football in the...
during the
sixtiesThe 1960s was the decade that ran from January 1, 1960, to December 31, 1969.The 1960s term also refers to an era more often called The Sixties, denoting the complex of inter-related cultural and political trends in the west, particularly United States, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Spain, France,...
and
seventiesThe 1970s was the decade that ran from January 1, 1970, to December 31, 1979.In the Western world, social progressive values that began in the 1960s, such as increasing political awareness and political and economic liberty of women, continued to grow...
. Today, Guy is the President of
AFC WimbledonAFC Wimbledon are a semi-professional English football club affiliated to both the London and Surrey Football Associations. AFC Wimbledon take their name from and trace their origins to Wimbledon in the London Borough of Merton, although their home ground, Kingsmeadow, is in the neighbouring Royal...
, the supporter-owned club which represents
WimbledonWimbledon is a suburb in south west London, part of the London Borough of Merton and located from Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London...
.
Guy made nearly 600 first team appearances for Wimbledon between 1967 and 1978. He was signed from local rivals Tooting and Mitcham who had taken him on as a junior from
MillwallMillwall Football Club is an English football team based in Bermondsey in the London Borough ofSouthwark, South East London. They currently play in Football League One. Their traditional strip consists of blue shirts, white shorts and blue socks. Their current strip is blue shirts, white shorts...
. During his Wimbledon career, he once made 275 consecutive appearances, and only missed a single game in a run of 449 consecutive matches between January 1970 and August 1977.
Guy shot to national fame during the then non-league club's spectacular 1975
FA CupThe Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football, run by and named after The Football Association. The name "FA Cup" usually refers to the English men's tournament, although a women's tournament is also held...
run, initially keeping a clean sheet as the Dons knocked out First Division
BurnleyBurnley Football Club , nicknamed The Clarets, are a professional English football club based in Burnley, Lancashire. They were founder members of The Football League in 1888. The club colours are claret and blue, giving rise to their nickname of The Clarets, and their home ground since 1883 has...
at
Turf MoorTurf Moor is a football stadium in Burnley, Lancashire. It is the home ground of English football club Burnley F.C., who have played there since 1883.It is situated on Harry Potts Way in Burnley, and has a capacity of 22,546, all seated...
in the third round, thus becoming the first non-league club in a century to beat a
First DivisionThe First Division was the top division of The Football League between 1892 and 1992 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the FA Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Coca Cola Championship.-History:The Football...
team on their own ground.
Dickie Guy (born 6 January 1949) is an
EnglishEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
former non-league
goalkeeperIn association football, the goalkeeper occupies a position that represents the last line of defence between the opponent's offence and his own team's goal. The primary role of the goalkeeper is to defend his team's goal and prevent the opposition from scoring a goal...
for
Wimbledon FCWimbledon Football Club was an English professional football club from Wimbledon, south west London. Founded in 1889 as Wimbledon Old Centrals, the club spent most of its history in amateur and semi-professional non-League football before a rapid ascent to the top-flight of English football in the...
during the
sixtiesThe 1960s was the decade that ran from January 1, 1960, to December 31, 1969.The 1960s term also refers to an era more often called The Sixties, denoting the complex of inter-related cultural and political trends in the west, particularly United States, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Spain, France,...
and
seventiesThe 1970s was the decade that ran from January 1, 1970, to December 31, 1979.In the Western world, social progressive values that began in the 1960s, such as increasing political awareness and political and economic liberty of women, continued to grow...
. Today, Guy is the President of
AFC WimbledonAFC Wimbledon are a semi-professional English football club affiliated to both the London and Surrey Football Associations. AFC Wimbledon take their name from and trace their origins to Wimbledon in the London Borough of Merton, although their home ground, Kingsmeadow, is in the neighbouring Royal...
, the supporter-owned club which represents
WimbledonWimbledon is a suburb in south west London, part of the London Borough of Merton and located from Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London...
.
Playing career
Guy made nearly 600 first team appearances for Wimbledon between 1967 and 1978. He was signed from local rivals Tooting and Mitcham who had taken him on as a junior from
MillwallMillwall Football Club is an English football team based in Bermondsey in the London Borough ofSouthwark, South East London. They currently play in Football League One. Their traditional strip consists of blue shirts, white shorts and blue socks. Their current strip is blue shirts, white shorts...
. During his Wimbledon career, he once made 275 consecutive appearances, and only missed a single game in a run of 449 consecutive matches between January 1970 and August 1977.
Guy shot to national fame during the then non-league club's spectacular 1975
FA CupThe Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football, run by and named after The Football Association. The name "FA Cup" usually refers to the English men's tournament, although a women's tournament is also held...
run, initially keeping a clean sheet as the Dons knocked out First Division
BurnleyBurnley Football Club , nicknamed The Clarets, are a professional English football club based in Burnley, Lancashire. They were founder members of The Football League in 1888. The club colours are claret and blue, giving rise to their nickname of The Clarets, and their home ground since 1883 has...
at
Turf MoorTurf Moor is a football stadium in Burnley, Lancashire. It is the home ground of English football club Burnley F.C., who have played there since 1883.It is situated on Harry Potts Way in Burnley, and has a capacity of 22,546, all seated...
in the third round, thus becoming the first non-league club in a century to beat a
First DivisionThe First Division was the top division of The Football League between 1892 and 1992 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the FA Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Coca Cola Championship.-History:The Football...
team on their own ground. But it was in the fourth round that Guy became a Dons legend, with a heroic display at
Elland RoadElland Road is an all-seater football stadium situated in the Beeston area of the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Elland Road has been the permanent residence of Leeds United A.F.C...
, not only keeping another clean sheet but, most famously, saving a
Peter LorimerPeter Patrick Lorimer was a footballer who formed part of the much-admired and feared Leeds United team of the 1960s and 1970s....
penaltyA penalty kick is a type of free kick in association football, taken from twelve yards out from goal and with only the goalkeeper of the defending team between the penalty taker and the goal....
to earn Wimbledon a replay against reigning English Champions, Leeds United. In the replay, he was again superb and was eventually only beaten by a single deflected own goal.
When Wimbledon were elected to
The Football LeagueThe Football League, also known as the Coca-Cola Football League for sponsorship reasons, is a league competition featuring professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest such competition in world football...
in 1977, he made a total of 19 appearances for the club before deciding that he wished to remain a semi-professional player, rather than give up his successful career outside football. His final game for Wimbledon was at
Plough LanePlough Lane was an football stadium in Wimbledon, south west London. It was the home ground of Wimbledon Football Club from September 1912 to May 1991, when the club moved their first team home matches to Selhurst Park as part of a groundshare agreement with Crystal Palace...
against Torquay United on 21 February1978. At the end of the season, in recognition of his devoted service to the club he was awarded a testimonial match against
ChelseaChelsea Football Club Chelsea Football Club Chelsea Football Club (are a professional English football club based in West London. The team, founded in 1905, play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football...
on 11 April1978.
He moved to
Maidstone UnitedMaidstone United Football Club are an English football team from Maidstone, Kent.The current club is a continuation of the old Maidstone United, former members of the Football League between 1989 and 1992, they were forced out of the league by financial ruin but the youth squad formed the nucleus...
after leaving Wimbledon and played in their giant-killing defeat of
Charlton AthleticCharlton Athletic Football Club is a professional association football club based in Charlton, in the London Borough of Greenwich...
.
More recently
As a renowned former player, Dickie Guy was a very outspoken opponent of the club's proposed re-location to
Milton KeynesMilton Keynes , often abbreviated MK, is a large town in Buckinghamshire, in the south east of England, about north-west of London. It is also the principal town of the Borough of Milton Keynes. It was formally designated as a new town on 23 January 1967...
, and their subsequent re-branding as
Milton Keynes DonsMilton Keynes Dons Football Club are an English professional football club founded in 2004 and based in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire...
. He was hence a hugely popular choice among Wimbledon fans when appointed as President of
AFC WimbledonAFC Wimbledon are a semi-professional English football club affiliated to both the London and Surrey Football Associations. AFC Wimbledon take their name from and trace their origins to Wimbledon in the London Borough of Merton, although their home ground, Kingsmeadow, is in the neighbouring Royal...
in 2002.
More recently, Guy made a brief comeback playing for a Wimbledon old boys team against a rival
Liverpool Liverpool Football Club is a professional football club based in Liverpool, England. The club plays in the Premier League, and has won more trophies than any other English club...
team at a charity event at Kingsmeadow in 2004.